Plow.



No. 835,997. I' PATENTED NOV. 13, 1906. W. H. WILLIAMS.

PLOW.'

'APPLICATION FILED DBo.1z.19oa.

z SHEETS-SHEET 1.

No. 835,997.' PATENTED NOV. 13, 1906. W. H. WILLIAMS. PLOW APPLIGATXONFILED DEQ-12. 1905.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

fge.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 13. 1906.

Application filed December 12,1905. Serial No` 291,393.v

sued on February 2, 1906, on combined lister plows and planters, filedFebruary 8, 1905, SerialNo. 244,799.

One of the objects of the presentfinvention is to produce means forlocking the plow depressed, so as to produce a continuous furrow, orelevated, so that it is carried inoperatively above the ground. A secondobject is to provide auxiliary means for assisting in the heaviest workof the plow and resisting its lightest work. 1

With these and other objects. inview, asl

hereinafter appear, the inventionconsists in certain novel and peculiarfeatures vofi/construction and organization, as hereinafter describedand claimed, and in order .that it may be fullyunderstood referenceis tobe had to the accompanying drawings, 1in which- Figure 1 is a sideelevation, partly in seci tion on the line II of Fig. 2, ofa plowembodying my invention. 1 Fig.` 2 is a top plan view of the machinewiththe rear end of the arched frame broken away.A Fig. 3 is a detailhorizontal section tal/gen on the line III III of Fig. 1. Fig. 4lis a|sectional perspectivel view to show the construction whereby the rearwheels are 4locked upon the rear shaft or crank axle. f, Fig. 5 is aview, partly in elevation and partly in central longitudinalsection,showing the plow at its highest point. Fig. 6 is a similar view of therear portion of the mechanism shown in Fig. 5 after the machine hasmoved forward a slight distance from the `position shown in Fig. 5 toshow theplow in the position it occupies asy it starts to enter theground.`

In the said drawings, 1 indicates the front wheels journaled on oppositeends of axle 2. 3 is ay king-bolt extending through said axle. A frameis constructed as follows: 4 is a cross-bar resting on the axle andsecured at its opposite ends to the front ends of a pair of sidebars,the latter being arched at their tional contact with thehubs.

front ends, as at 6, in order vthat the'front wheels may turn thereunder'to permit 'the machine to be turned in a small s ace. The drawings donot show said w eels sufficiently smallfor the purpose mentioned, butthat is the chief reason forarching the side bars.

7 indicates bearings depending from the rear ends of the side bars, and8 ya crank-shaft journaled therein, the crank 9Iof theA shaft beingdisposed centrally of its length.

. 1() indicates the rear wheels of the' machine, the same beingjournal'ed on the ends of the crank-shaft, a clutch mechanism forlocking the wheels rigid with the shaft when desired being constructedas follows: 47 indicates notches in the hub of each wheel 10, and 48shoulders between said notches. Inward of each hub and rigid on theshaft is a collar 49, provided with peripheral notches 50, adapted toregister with but shorter than notches 47, and in this connectionattention is called to Fig. 4, which shows the notched collar withdrawnfrom the hub simply for the purpose of making the construction clear. Inpractice the collars 49 will be almost in fric- The slidable member 11of each clutch isprovid'ed with a groove 51 and a luralityl ofoutwardly-projecting peripheralp tongues 52, `corresponding in numbertonotches-50,'and adapted at times to project through ysaid notches intonotches 47 to lock the wheels and rigid co1- lars 49 together, and thuscompel shaft 8' to be turned by said wheels as the machine is drawnacross the field. In view of thefact that the tongues 52 are narrowerthan the length of notches 47 it is obvious that `the wheels have alimited -independent movement on the shaft, which lost motion is proyvance of its companion, and which would result if the wheels had nolostmotion in applying a twisting strain on the front axle.

12indicates forked arms of the customary type, with their forks engagingthe grooves 51, said arms overlying the side bars 5 and having teeth 13so as to constitute rack-bars,

which rack-bars are adapted to slide inward and outward and are guidedin such movements by the guides 14 secured to the side bars.

15 indicates cog-wheels engaging the rackbars and secured'onthe rearends of shafts ICO IIO

16, journaled'in bearings 17, secured to the side bars and provided attheir front ends with crank-arms 18, adapted for operation by preferenceby the operators feet. The weight of the arms 18 is such that when inthe position shown in Fig. 2 they hold the clutch members locked, sothat the rotation of the wheels 10 will impart like movement to the.

crank-shaft. When the crank-arms 18 project outward and upwardly, theyhold the clutch members disengaged, so that wheels 1() are free to turnon the crank-shaft.

A superstructure or arch-frame comprises the arches 19, secured at theirlower ends to the side bars, and the longitudinal bar 20, connectingsaid arches. The frame may also be provided with one or moresupplemental arches 21, if desired, and mounted upon bar 20, contiguousto arch 21, by preference, is the seat 22 for the driver.

23 indicates the plow-beam, the same having its front end extendingslidingly through a slot or opening 24 in the crossbar 4 and also havinga longitudinal -slot 25, through which the king-bolt extends. 26indicates a pair of retractile springs secured at their front ends tothe beam, as shown at 27, (see Fig. 1,) and at their rear ends to thebolts28, used for securing arch 21 to the side bars, it being obvious,of course, that the rear ends of the springs 26 may be otherwise securedto fixed points onthe frame. The tendency of these springs is to holdthe beam withdrawn to the rear as far as possible, fora reason whichhereinafter appears. The rear end of thebeam 23 preferably terminates inan angular portion 29, the substantially hori- Zontal arm of saidportion being disposed in a higher plane than the rear endV of the mainportion of the beam, and said portion 29 is equipped with a longitudinalseries of holes 30 to receive the bolt 31, also extending through one ofa vertical series of apertures 33 in a bar 32, projecting upward fromthe lister or double moldboard plow 34, though obviously the plow may beof any form suitable for the work to be done.

To brace the plow and cause it to tilt its point upwardly or downwardlyto facilitate its progress toward or away from the surface of theground, a. pair of links 35, pivotally connect bar 32 with the brackets36, secured to the side bars 5, the forward portion of said links' beingdisposed above springs k2 6 in order to avoid conflict therewith.

For the purpose of locking the plow-beam against longitudinal movement,l provide a wedge inthe form of a vertical fork 37, engaging notches 38in the front and rear sides 'of the cross-bar 4, said wedge having astem 39. extending up through registering openings 4() and 41 in thewidened portion of the front arch 19 and the front portion of bar 20.The upper end of the forked stem is provided with a bolt 42, engaging alongitudinal slot 43 in a lever 44, fulcrumed in brackets 45, carried bybar 20. The lever 44 is preferably of resilient metal, so that it mayspring under the overhanging u per portion of the angle-bracket 46,carrie by bar 20. When the lever is thus secured, as shown, the wedge isdisposed above the plane of the plow-beam, so as not to interfere withthe reciprocatory operation thereof.

As the machine is drawn across the field the crank-shaft revolves in thedirection indicated by the arrow, Fig. 1, and causes the front end ofthe plow-beam to reciprocate on the king-bolt, the plow entering thegroundl when the crank of the shaft has just passed over and forward ofits axis of movement, as

shown in Fig. 6, and emerging from the ground just before said crankassumes the vertical position above its axis shown in Fig. 5. It willthus be seen that the plow is in the ground for almost a completerevolution of the crank-shaft, but that the length of time it is in theground may be varied by adjusting bar 32 vertically ony the plow-beam.The plow in this operation produces a series of concave furrows orditches in longitudinal alinement with each other, the dotted line aindicating the lfront or last-formed end of the furrow produced by theupward movement of the plow and the dotted line b the rear orfirst-formed end of the next furrow in advance, said last-named furrowbeing produced in the movement of the machine forward from the positionindicated in Fig. 6. In the. production of each furrow it is necessaryfor thelplow to point downward in making thefirst'half of the furrow(see Fig. 6) and A upward in making the last half, the link-` braces 35accomplishing this object because of the independent forward andbackward movement imparted to the plow-beam by the crankshaft. y

When it is desired to lo'ck the beam against longitudinal movement, withthe plow in or out of the ground, the operator disengages the lever frombracket 46 and raises the handle end of the same, so as to force thewedge downward-into the slot 2 5 of the plow-beam, and thus lock thelatter against longitudinal movement. When thus locked with the plow inthe ground, a continuous furrow will be produced, it being of courseunderstood that immediately after the plowbeam slot is engaged by thewedge thecrank-arms 18 must be operated to disengage the clutches andleave the rear wheels free to ,turn onthe crank-shaft. If it be desiredto plow at a different depth, the bar 32 will be adjusted vertically onthe portion 29 of the beam, it being apparent that said bar shouldlikewise bev adjusted longitudinally of portion 29 in order that saidbar 32 shall be upright when the crank is disposed vertically below orabove its axis of movement.

When the wedge or locking device is with- IOC IIO

drawn from kthe slot 25 of the beam, the springs 26 resist the rearwheels as they drive the plow into the ground until the plow haspenetrated about half its distance-i. e., until the crank 9 has moveddown to a horizontal position. As the crank passes such plane thesprings begin to coperate vwith the wheelsin driving the plow deeper andcontinue such-assistance until the crank has attained a horizontalposition rearwardof its axis of rotation, after which the springs againresist the wheels as they effect the emergence of the plow from theground. In this connection it will be understood that the rearwardmovement of the plow is only relative, because the machine is beingdrawn forward at such a speed that the plow actually moves forward atall times, as explained. clearly in the patent to which reference hasbeen made heretofore. l l

As the plow emerges from the ground, as above explained, its tendency isto jump forward and upward because of the play or lost motion in theclutch mechanism of the rear wheels, as explained in the aforesaid aplication 5 but at such moment the beam 1s fully withdrawn and thespringsi26 are prepared to and do offer a yielding resistance to suchmovement, and therefore prevent the jar or jolt whichwould be the resultof such movement and which would be injurious to the clutch mechanism.In this connection it will be seen that because the plow is tilteddownward while moving in that direction and upward while moving upwardit actually plows its way in both directions, and therefore operatesmore effi ciently than if the driving-wheels were wholly depended uponto force it into and pull it out of the ground.

The normal position ofthe plow when Aelevated is with its point barelyout of contact with the ground. (See Fig. 5.) In traveling over roughground the plow in the position just described would beapt to digintothe ground at intervals or strike obstructions, and thus in one caseimposean additional burden on the team or result in injury to the plow.To avoid this, when traveling over rough ground the plow may be' raisedto a higherplane by vertical adjustment of bar32 on portion 29 of thebeam, as will be readily understood.

From the above descriptionv it will belapparent that I have produced aplow possessing the features of advantage enumerated as desirable in thestatement of invention and which obviously maybe modified in `minordetails without departing from the principle of construction involved.

Having thus described theinvention, what I claim asfnew, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a machine of the .character described, a carrying-frame, acrank-shaft j ournaled thereon, means to revolve said shaft, a plowjournaled yon the shaft, means to tilt the plow to cause it to plowdownward` and upwardalternately, and means for yieldingly resistingmovement of the plow in a forward direction independent of the machinetravel.

2. In a machine ofthe character described, a carrying-frame, acrank-shaft j ournaled thereon, means to revolve-said shaft, a vplowjournaled on the shaft, means to tilt the plow to cause it to plowdownward and upward alternately, means for yieldingly resisting movementof the plow in a forward direction independent of the machine travel,and means to lock the plow against movement independent of the machinetravel.

3. In a machine of the character described, a carrying-frame, avcrank-shaft ournaled thereon, means to revolve said shaft, a plow journaled on the shaft, means to tilt the plow to cause it Vto plowdownward and upward alternately, and one or more retractile springssecured at their front ends to the plow-beam and at their rear ends tothe carrying-frame.

4. In a machine of the character described, a carrying-frame, acrank-shaft j ournaled thereon, means to revolve said shaft, a plow journaled on the shaft, means to tilt the plow to cause it to plowdownwardand upward alternately, one or more retractile springs securedat their front ends to the plow-beam and at their rear ends to thecarrying-frame, and'meansto lock the plow against movement independentof the machine travel.

5. In a machine of the character described, a carrying-frame, having aguide-opening at its front end, a crank-shaft j ourn-aled in the rearportion of said frame, means to revolve said shaft, a plow having itsbeam journaled on the crank-shaft vand projecting through saidguide-opening, means to tilt said plow to cause it to plow downward andupward alternately, and means for yieldingly resisting movement. of theplow in a forward direction independent of the machine travel.

6. In a machine of the character described, a carrying-frame, having aguide-opening at its front end, a crank-shaft journaled in the rearportion of said frame, means to revolve said shaft, a plow havingits-beam journaled on the crank-shaft and projecting through saidguide-opening, means to tilt said plow to cause it to plow downward andvupward alternately, means for yieldingly resisting movement of the plowin a forward direction independent of the machine travel, and means tolock the plow against movement independent of the machine travel.

. 7. In a machine of the character described, a carrying-frame,'havingaguide-opening at its front end, a crank-shaft j ournaled in the rearportion of said frame, means to revolve said shaft, a'plow'having itsbeam journaled on the crank-shaft and projecting through saidguide-opening andprovided with a lon- IOO IIO

gitudinal slot, a wedge for engagement with said slot to lock the beamagainst reciprocatory movement, and means to render the plow rigid withrespect to the beam.

8. .In a machine of the character described, a carrying-frame, having aguide-opening at its front end, a crank-shaft journaled in the rearportion of said frame, means to revolve said shaft, a plow having itsbeam journaled on the crank-shaft and projecting through saidguide-opening and providedwith a longitudinal slot, a wedge forengagement with said slot to lock the beam against reciprocatorymovement, and means whereby the plow may be vertically adjusted withrespect to the beam. l

9. In a machine of the character described, acarrying-frame, having aguide-opening at v its front end, a crank-shaft journaled in the rearportion of said frame,'means to revolve said shaft, a plow having itsbeam journaled on the crank-shaft and projecting through saidguide-opening and provided with a longitudinal slot, a wedge forengagement with said slot to lock the beam against reciprocatorymovement, means whereby the plow may be vertically adjusted with respectto the beam and braces between the plow and the carrying-frame to securethe latter rigid with the beam.

10. In a machine of the character described, front and rear wheels anaxle connecting the front wheels, a crank-shaft connecting the rearwheels, a frame journaled on the crankshaft and pivoted on the axle, aplow-beam journaled on the crank of the shaft and having its front endguided to reciprocate in the front part of said frame and provided witha longitudinal slot, a plow provided with a bar pivoted to the rear endof the plow-beam, links pivotally connecting said bar with said frame,and a reciprocatory wedge carried by said frame and adapted to engagethe slot of the plow-beam to lock the latter from reciprocatorymovement. i

1 1. In a machine of the character described, front and rearwheels, anaxle connecting the front wheels, 'a crank-shaft connecting thev rearwheels, a frame journaled on the crankshaft and pivoted on the axle, aplow-beam journaled on the crank of the shaft and having its front endguided to reciprocate in the front part of said frame and provided witha longitudinal slot, a plow provided with a bar pivoted to the rear endof the plowbeam, links pivotally connecting said bar with said frame, areciprocatory wedge carried by said frame and adapted to engage the slot-of the plow-beam to lock the latter from reciprocatory fmovement, andmeans to lock said wedge in or out of engagement with said slot.

12. In a machine of the character described, front and rear wheels, anaxle connecting the fr ont wheels, a crank-shaft connecting the rearwhe-els, a frame journaled on the crankshaft and pivoted on the axle, alow-beam journaled on t he crank of the sha' and having its front endguided to reciprocate in the front part of said frame and provided witha longitudinal slot, a plow rovided with a bar pivoted to the rear endofp the plow-beam, links pivotally connecting said bar with said frame,and a vertical forked wedge guided in the front part of said frame andadapted to engage the slot of said beam forward and rearward of the axisof movement of said frame with the axle. 1 13. In a machine of thecharacter described, front and rear wheels, an axle connecting the frontwheels, a crank-shaft connecting the rear wheels, a frame journaled onthe crankshaft and resting on the axle, a king-bolt extending throughsaid'frame and axle, a plowbeam journaled. on the crank of the shaft andhavingits front end guidedfto reciprocate in the front partof saidframe' and provided with a longitudinal slot, engaged by the kingbolt, aplow provided with a bar pivoted -to the rear end of the plow-beam,links pivotally connecting said bar with said frame, and a reciprocatorywedge carried by said frame and adapted to engage the slot of theplowbeam to lock the latter from reciprocatory movement.4

14. In a machine of the character described, front and rear wheels, anaxle connectingthe front wheels, a crank-shaft connecting the rearwheels, a frame journaled on the crankshaft and pivoted on the axlealow-beam journaled on the crank of the sha lt and having its front endguided to reciprocate in the front part of said frame and provided witha longitudinal slot, a plow provided with a bar ivoted to thejrear endof the plow-beam, inks pivotally connecting said bar with said frame, areciprocatory wedge carried by said frame and adapted to engage the slotof the plow-beam to` lock the latter from reciprocatory movement, andantifriction devices be- IOC tween the front portion of said frame andthe y plow-beam.

15. In a machine of the character described, front Aand rear wheels, anaxle connecting the front wheels, a crank-shaft connecting the rearwheels, a frame journaled on the crankshaft and pivoted on the axle, alow-beam journaled on the crank of the shaft and having its front endguided to reciprocate in the front part of said frame and provided witha longitudinal slot, a plow provided with a bar ivoted to the rear endof the plow-beam, links pivotally connecting said bar with said frame, asuperstructure on said frame and provided with a seat, avertically-movable wedge carriedby and guided on said frame andsuperstructure in the vertical plane of the slot of the beam', and meansfor causing said wedge -to engage the slot of said beam or withdraw ittherefrom.

16. In a machine of the character described, l wedge carried b y andguided on said frame front and rear wheels, an aXle connecting the rearwheels, a frame journaled on the crank- 5 shaft and pivoted on the aXle,a low-beam journaled on the crank ofthe sha 't and hav- )l said wedge inits elevated position.

mg its front end guided to reciprocate in the In testimony whereof IaliX my signature 2o front part of said frame and provided with a l inthe presence of two witnesses.

longitudinal slot, a plow provided with a bar WILLIAM H WILLIAMS 1olivoted to the rear end of the plow-beam,

links pivotally connecting said bar with said l ame, a superstructure onsaid frame and provided with a seat, a vertically-movable Witnesses:-

v H. C. RODGERS, G. Y. THORPE.

and superstructure in the vertical plane of I5

